Process of extracting thoria from monazite sand.



STATESrATENT-Q enemies BASKERVILLE, on NEW YORK, 1v. Y., .assronon 'ro wELsnAc H LIGHT COMPANY, OF GLOUCESTER CITY, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION 'OF'INEW JERSEY.

No Drawing.

To all whom it mag concern Be it known that I, CHARLES BASKER- I'VILLE, a citizen of the United States, and.

resident of the borough ofManhattan, in the city-,county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulv Improvements in Processes of Extracting 'lhoria from Monazite Sand; and I do herebydeclare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the in the preparation of the Welsbach mantle.

- temperatures employed, so that theresultant product ofthe furnace operation shall be in-large part devoid both of phosphorus f proportions may be varied somewhat accordmg to circumstances, and that they depend and silicon. To this end, I employ carbon and a suitable fluorid as, for example,,calcium fluorid in admixture with the monazite sand, and subject the mixture to the .Monazite sand may be said ,to be essentially a mixed phosphate of the rare earths, the thorium present occurri 'either as a phosphate, or, as has been suggested .by some, as a silicate. The composition of monazite sand is somewhat variable, even when the methods employed for connecting and separating it have been eflicient and well conducted. In general, however, monazite:

may be said to have in round numbers) the following approximate composition,-to wit:

' O earth's 31.

Di O earths) 31. iO 1.50- T11O,' 6.50

Commercial monazite sand contains silica as well as some silicates, among its constituents, and as will be: hereinafter noted, their presence requires special provision in the practice of theinvention.

. In carrying out my invention, I contemplate a procedure whlch will result in the reduction and volatilization of the" phosphorus and the simultaneous production of a silicon compound likewise volatile at the Specification of Letters Patent.

I PROCESS OF EXTRACTING THORIA FROM MONAZITE SAND.

v Patented Feb.17,'1914l. Application filed-February 26,1912. Seri'a1No.679,919. a

high temperature incident to the, actidn of the electric current/either direct or alter mating, in a suitable electric furnace,

,The operation is attended by the volatilization of phosphorus,- the metals ap-' pearingin the product in the form of carb1ds; So also silicon tetrafiuorid is produced which is volatilized and which is driven off at the temperature of its production. The productof the furnace. operation described is thereafter to be digested with hydrochloricor other acid so :as to form a solution from which the'thoria can be extracted by various chemical methods I have found, however, that the said fur-.

nace product or residueis quite hard and is difficult to pulverize,fwhereas for economi-- cal reasons, it is necmsary to pulverize it in order to assist the prompt action 1 of the hydrochloric acid, 2'. 6., the finer the degree of pulverization, the more readily it is acted upon b the' acid. Inorder to overcome this di culty, and to reduce the expense of grinding, it is desirable to introduce within the mass, a certain amount of calcium carbid by producing it ,simultane-,

ously by the well knownreaction of fusing either quicklime or 'limestonewith carbon}? Accordingly, in the preferred practice of,

my invention, I so compound the furnace mixture that not only will the phosphorus and sllicon be eliminated, but also so that there will be produced in and throughout. the final product asuitable quantity of calcium carb-id which, when the furnace prodnot is subjected to the action of water, is

decomposed, evolving acetylene gas, and which permits the mass'to become readily' I disintegrated and then"cheaply ground to the fineness desired. In the preferred practice of my -invention, therefore, I compound the furnace charge in the following proportions:

Monazite sand"; 1 pound Carbon (preferably as peitroleum coke) 1.1' Quick-lime 0.8 Calcium flourid 0.15

It will, of course, be understood that these upon the composition of the variable con 35 air, or by disintegrating it by throwin with respect to the amount of silica or silicates as well as the amount of phosphate associated with it.

In carrying out my invention, I have used various types of furnaces, as, for instance, the resistance-heat furnace of the Stockem type, the resistance furnace of the Acheson carborundum type, the Moissan arc furnace, and the Heroult crucible furnace. As it is desirable to fuse the mass thoroughly, I in order to effect complete reaction, and in, order to avoid prelimina grinding of the monazite sand, a crucible rnace was found most satisfactory. So also, in practice, I

V have found'it suitable to employ alternating current varying in amperage from 100 to 300 am eres and in voltage from to 60 volts. Vith the charges of the sizes used, the best results wereobtained with a current I .20 of 125 amperes and volts, and with afurnace duration of treatment of from 1 to 1% hours,although it will beunderstood that of these limits. I do not limit myself, how- 25 ever, to the employment of any particular ty of electric furnace, the essential thing being, in that regard, to makethe electric current available'as a sufiicient source-Tot heat. In fact, any other source of heat of 30 sufiicient-intensity may be employed, when available forthe purpose. I I

The furnace product, as hereinbefore indi-v cated, is permitted to slake (with the"evolu-- ,tion of acetylene.) either byexposure to the it. before .or after cooling,"'into water. his 7 water may be drawn ofl, together with the amount of calcium hydroxid which it holds in solution or suspension, forzthe reason that 'mat on of said product in generatln 40 the'calcium hydroxid would materially crease the consumption of the acid necessary to obtain the rare earth carbidsin solution. The. residue. is then di estedwith hydro-- v chloric or other acid, an being subsequently 'filter'ed, gives a liquid from which j-the thorium may be extracted. Any unattacked residue may be used in a subsequent charge."v

In so far as I am aware, it is broadly new to facilitate'l the breaking down of a hard the practice is notto be restricted to the use p monazite sand, which comprises subjecting a mixture of monazite, car on and calcium fluorld to a temperature sufliclent to eliminate the phosphorus and silicon resent in the sand, and to convert themeta s into carbids; substantially as described.

3. The method of extracting thoria from a mixture of monazite, carbon, lime and a suitable 'fiuorid to a temperature suflicrent to eliminate the phosphorus and silicon in the sand, and to convert the metals into carbids,

and then disintegrating the resultin' furnace product by slaking it; substantia ly as described. v

L'The method of facilitating the breakingadown of a hard and difiicultly pulver- .izable formation of said product in generating calcium carbid asa constituent thereof.

5. The method of facilitating the breakin down of a hard and diflicult'ly pulverizableproduct, which consists during the for- In testimony whereof I afix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES BASKERVILLE.

I Witnesses? H. A. HAMOR,

THOMAS F. OKEEFFE.

roduct, which consists during the cal- Correction in Letters Patent No. 1,087,095).

It is hereby certified that in Letters Petent No. 1,087,099, granted February 17 1914', upon the application of Charles Baskerville, of New York, N. Y., for an improvement in Processes of Extrecting Thoria from Monazite Sand, an error appears ip the printed specification requiring correction as follows: Page 1, line 26,

i for the word connecting read collecting; and that the said Letters Patent should be read this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Oflice.

Signed and sealed this 10th dayof March, A. 13., 1914.

R. T. FRAZIER, Acting Commissioner of Patents.

[emu] It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,087,099, granted February 17,

1914, upon the application of Charles Baskerville, of New York, N. Y., for an improvement in Processes of Extracting Thoria from Monazite Sand, an error appears in the printed specification requiring correction as follows: Page 1, line 26,

for the Word connecting read collecting; and that the said Letters Patent should be read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of Letters Patent No. 1,087,099.

the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 10th day of March, A. D., 1914.

[SEAL-1 R. T. FRAZIER,

Acting Commissioner of Patents.

ion in Qorrect 

